tas unique

Thursday, June 17, 2010

Interior love: My Super Ex-Girlfriend

I know, I know, this is a 2006 movie... but it was aired on TV recently and I did enjoy re-surveying G-Girl's super white apartment.

Uma Thurman plays Jenny Johnson, a lady with super powers. Ms Johnson lives in a gorgeously appointed apartment. It's super white, super glossy... just the type of apartment that would not faze a superhero's efforts to clean and polish.

I don't remember blogland going all goo-goo-ga-ga over super white living spaces in 2006. My Super Ex-Girlfriend came off quite avant garde for me, with its all white and blond wood feel.

Every surface is white! Ceiling, walls, floors... even some of the chairs. As befitting an art gallery owner, the apartment's only wall decor are these classically framed prints and photos. G-Girl is very no-nonsense, no-gray-shades, black and white. And this is reflected in her apartment. Very little fuss, very little ruffles. The frames are not ornate... and the large white space between frame and actual photograph, again highlighting this side to G-Girl.

But what a glorious idea for artwork! Simple super-slim picture shelves almost on every wall. Course, my artwork will be way coloured!

No furry rug, no fancy heart (or any) cushions... But luxuriously appointment pieces of furniture...

Don't you love the coffee table to the right? I have been looking forever for a vintage giant wooden spool drum (for electrical and phone wiring) to use as a coffee table. This sort of mirrors the spool shape.

Strong, stark black frames for windows, no luxurious cascade of velvet or lace. It's just this flowy chiffon type fabric that flits about beautifully with her super-fast movements.

I love the different materials and finishes used in her living space. We have wood, leather, wool/linen, brocade, chiffon, wrought iron, brass, gilt...

Another view of the living/lounge area. A very formal seating arrangement, light pinkish lounge chairs. But so beautifully put!

Not too sure how practical it is to have that deep buttoned white long ottoman by the heater, but it does look so good there. Uma's character does move it to another spot later in the movie.

I also really heart that art deco blond wood side table to Luke Wilson's left.

A peek into her bedroom zone via this all white hallway. No glimpses of kitchen or bathroom, but just large window after window with chiffon after chiffon curtains billowing around. And at the end of this hallway is her bedroom. No doors for G-Girl!

At night. You can see the same white hallway. The night sky is camouflaged by the same chiffon curtains... so much so it still looks like daytime!

A few candles, more casual seating arrangement, and the place becomes warmer, friendly, softer.

You know, the more and more I see it in pics and experience in my home, the more I want to eschew overhead lighting and just use lamps. I love the vintage lucite lamp. Pity they cost a motza here in Australia...

Here's a better look into the bedroom area. Now the pictures on the walls have more colours, are more curvy. Now the space has some feminine touches, like the bunch of happy yellow lilies and ornate table.

Uma Thurman is not my favourite beauty in Hollywood, but in this shot, she looks exquisite. And see the side table? And lilies? Her grey and white throw?

Ah. Here in the "heart" of the apartment, we get to the "heart" of the character. And she is indeed soft, mushy and feminine. Her bedroom is full of curves and softer lines. Hardly anything is with strong, defined lines. And while it is predominantly white, there are other colours: blues, greens, taupes, yellows.

As Jenny Johnson disappears off into the closet/bathroom area to change into G-Girl, we see the first non-white room. It's aqua!

Again, more feminine touches, quite a bit of flowers/greenery... I love this room. It's messy, it's girly...

All in all, I so enjoyed these scenes and wish there were way, way, way more glimpses into G-Girl's apartment.

Wednesday, June 16, 2010

The Terrible Twos

On June 11, I failed to draw attention to a significant milestone: this blog is now two years old!

Isn't that an awesome Hot Wheels cake? I'm pretty sure that's not the kind of cake I got when I turned two. Mine probably had some My Little Pony bullshit on it.

One parenting website describes two-year-old behavior as "characterized by being negative about most things and often saying 'no.' The terrible twos may also find your toddler having frequent mood changes and temper tantrums."

Huh. I feel like that also describes my 20s. "No, I don't want to work at a real job! I want to stay in college FOREVER. WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

The Sesame Street website has some helpful visual aids. At age two, it becomes increasingly important to start enforcing/building good eating habits. My favorite Sesame Street character, Cookie Monster, has an important song about this:

I find it interesting that the video has good stuff to say about nutrition, but delivers it through a Muppet who uses terrible grammar and broken English ("Hey, what that? That look like bunch of fruit!"). Learning to speak correctly is apparently not a priority for two-year-olds.

I'm not trying to hate on Cookie Monster, though. He's the best. I own a Tickle-Me-Cookie-Monster. He hangs out with my other strange stuffed items, which include Maurice (a stuffed mustache) and the infamous Catbread.

Yes, I still sleep with stuffed animals. DON'T JUDGE ME. If you do, I might have to throw a temper tantrum.

Happy (belated) birthday, Vagnino Monologues!

Tuesday, June 15, 2010

Sarah Richardson's Farmhouse

Of all the interior designers that I love, Sarah Richardson must be my absolute tops. Her demand for brightness, comfort and a sense of well being in her designed spaces exactly match mine. So when I joined her Facebook page, I got to see her farmhouse from the Sarah's Farmhouse series in Canada. (We don't get it here on FreeToAir, dammit.)

I loved it. The feel, the colours, the fabrics... all such genius choices by Sarah Richardson and her super-talented sidekick Tommy Smythe. Enjoy some of the shots... and if you're on Facebook, do become a fan to see the complete collection.

The newly painted blue-grey beams seems to lovingly wrap the red brick. I don't normally like red brick... I love plaster exterior for brick homes, but in this case, the red brick sits so happily amongst the lovely green of grass and the blue grey beams. The other buildings are painted a calm clay-brown, which seems to give this space a modern edge.

I am so in love with the reds in this house, starting from the entrance. Reds in the rugs, doors, wallpapers, against all the lovely beige and light tans in the tiles, floorboards, seatings, walls...

How genius to have two built in cupboards, no doubt for coats, jackets, shopping bags, umbrellas and shoes, in the entranceway, hiding all the clutter of life flanking a gorgeous antique chest of drawers. What I love about Sarah and Tommy's visions for their homes is that they choose the best pieces for looks as well as function. These chest of drawers will hide scarves, gloves and berets.

Opposite this is a lovely powder room. I love the pink delicate wallpaper with the gorgeous round brass - and unexpected - chandelier. Very dramatic and sweet at the same time, perfectly calculated for a small space.

I love that most walls in this house are half coloured, half wallpapered... and the other half left white. This restraint allows for those who can't afford the expensive wallpaper for a whole room.

Around the corner is the hallway that opens into a beautiful space. The living room.

Again, I see Richardson's demand for comfort in her seating, mostly her own designs. Love the beautiful white-washed ceilings, gorgeous wrought iron chandelier in this room... and the sweet mirrored, star-shaped scones at the top.

Richardson and Smythe must have been joyous at the sight of the gorgeous tin insignia. Fits perfectly in the space above the fireplace. The size is just nice enough and that seems to be enough for the walls... no other major artwork nearby. The pieces, are restraint and thoughtfully chosen... loving the grandfather clock just in that side wall, without any other accessories.

I love the orange 'flames' of the candles, scones and chandelier repeated in the warm oranges and rusts of the pillows, accessories... even the whitewashed beams above have a tinge of orange that is so welcoming. Especially right now in Australia, when it is increasingly cold and wintry.

Across a hallway sits a comfortable, warm and simple dining room. Above the picture rail they've chosen to wallpaper a warm red provincial print. Simple chandelier, lovely warm Persian rug, antique wooden dining table with cane chairs..

and a china cabinet to the left.

Love the stuffed pheasants on top of the cabinet! I normally run far away from anything taxidermy-ish. Maybe they're not real!

Past that is a bright and airy kitchen. I love everything about this space, except the small space above the kitchen cabinets. Dust catchers and it's a spot impossible to clean. Again the warm tones of orange against the cool palettes of white in marble and paint so beautifully match this house. I even love the warm tones of the lightbulbs against the cool blue-grey of the tin shades hanging above the bench.

Cabinetry have clean lines and simple knobs.

This whimsical painted staircase would be perfect for little children to recite their 123s. Again, a pale orange. Simple touches.

One of the main bedrooms has a lovely farmhouse feel. Red and blue with whites in the bedspreads, rugs, cabinetry, chairs...

See the lovely imperfect dresser with some paint intentionally left to highlight the colours chosen and add more texture. Simple curtains... Nothing too serious in this house.

Bright, beautiful, clean main bathroom. Love the pale yellow tones here... and absolutely giggled at the cute yellow and green duck on the washtand.

Love how the pale yellow of the curtains match the enamel on the claw foot iron bathtub.

The master bedroom is so peaceful with the jewel tones of yellow, oranges, rusts and greens.
Love the little green settee. Perfect for putting on socks and shoes.

The children's bathrooms are so cute with their two marble-topped antique washstand-dressers.

Now this I have to keep in my mind. I have a cupboard just like this one that I will also use in my future bathrooms. Fit towels, soaps, jars, shampoos... Great idea. And I have loved vintage birdcages for so long that when I saw this pic, I gasped!

I loved the fabric of the headboard in the girls' room. Anyone know what fabric this is?

Btw, do peruse her new paint collection with PARA Paints, as if fantastic furniture and homewares weren't enough of a coup!

Friday, June 11, 2010

So You Think You Don't Like Poetry

I thought for this week it would be interesting to post two poems on the same subject: learning. One is by Brendan Constantine; it's called "1981" and was published last year in the journal Luvina. The other is by (gasp!) me. It's called "Learning Curve" and I wrote it last year. It was just published in Waterways.

(Note: For some reason, Blogger is not letting me format this the way I want -- so some of the line breaks are off. To read it correctly formatted, click here)

1981

I learned the word disaster meant against the stars,
learned it did not apply to this world; the sky intended
every cruelty. .....................
I watched the boy with no legs
draw pictures of feet for an hour in Study Hall. .........................................................In the hall
of my uncle’s rest home I heard the paper voice of a man
so old he’d forgotten he was blind. When a nurse passed
his door, he’d ask “Turn the lights on, would you?”

I learned sadness like a way home from school. I got in
later and later. Some nights I didn’t come back at all
but sat up waiting for myself. ..............................................
I passed Geography,
History, & Spanish for the last time. My cat died.
My dog turned grey. My physics teacher was hit
by an ambulance.
But I read a book & understood it.
A woman asked me to touch her body. I did. ......................
I wrote
my first poem. It said people were like moons. I believed
what I wrote, believed I had done all my writing, wouldn’t
do anymore. .....................
Then I believed a book that said the oleanders
behind our house were poison. All summer I dreamed
of meeting someone I could feed one brutal flower.

Learning Curve

I don’t remember learning how to wrap
a gift, who taught me how with steady hands
to tie the string around my fingers, curl
the ends. Tying shoelaces I’ll credit to Dad,
along with telling time and jokes, balancing
a checkbook, chopping onions without crying.
In fifth grade, Val showed me the way to run
a razor over my legs, said Watch out
around the ankles. French kissing: the honor
goes to a wiry boy whose name was James
or John. He slid his timid tongue across
my gums, placed his hand on my hairless knee.
You can break a promise and be forgiven
I learned from my mother, as well as how
to flirt while knotting a necktie around
your lover’s throat. Lying I picked up myself,
first small things like I’ve never felt this way
before, then bigger, hungrier untruths:
This glass will be my last; sex means nothing;
bruises are beautiful; I am not a poet.

Black and white stripes

I can't believe I haven't blogged about black and white stripes.

I love the bold touch, the sharp, atmospheric lift to a room. No room is hands-off to the treatment. No decorating style - French, modern, shabby chic, Victorian - is faux pas to this glorious look.